Adventure Comics Vol 1 40
story that continues from last issue. Tex and Browne, two agents of the F.B.I. that were investigating a counterfeit operation, found out that the governments printing plates, used to print the national currency, had been stolen and replaced with counterfeits. After receiving a tip-off, they took a cab to an old warehouse in Manhattan where the counterfeiters were said to be currently operating. Sneaking in through the back way, they found the building completely dark. A few minutes of searching with their flashlights brings them upstairs to the 2nd floor, where two corridors go in opposite directions around the building. Browne tells Tex to search left while he goes right, and to meet up back by the stairs. Tex's side led him to nothing but a dead end, so he walked back and waited for Browne to return. A minute passed, then two. After five minutes without any sign of his friend, Tex grew concerned that something bad might have happened, so he heads down the hallway that Browne had taken and slowly turns a corner. There was a door with light coming out from under the crack, and subtle voices talking within. As he got closer, the voices became louder, though it was still unclear what they were saying. Placing a hand on the knob, he swung the door back revealing a dimly lit room with three men standing in the center. Printing presses were scattered against the walls, and in one corner Browne was out like a light, having been bound and gagged. And as Tex came in the room with his gun drawn, he felt some blunt force hit him from behind causing him to black out. Tex woke up sitting on the floor next to Browne, with his arms and legs tied and a roll of tape over his mouth. The criminals were talking about boarding a ship named "The Princess of Bermuda" set to leave at midnight tonight with the printing plates, never to be seen again. They would leave the federal agents tied up in this room where no one will find them until it was too late. One of the men tied a chloroform-soaked sponge around Tex's neck to put him out, and it took all of his will to keep awake after they left. There was a phone on the far table, but Tex knew he could never reach it before the fume overcame him. Then he noticed a bucket of water that was left nearby. He scooched his body across the wooden floor, gaining splinters in his legs and chest as he went, until he was right next to the bucket. Taking a deep breath, he submerged his entire head in the water, repeating this four more times until the chloroform sponge had become useless. From there, he used the leg of the printing press to saw through his ropes... The local police had been called and a patrol of squad cars headed out to the dock where the surprised counterfeiters were taken away to face charges, resulting in the printing plates being returned to the Secretary of Treasury. In his office of the local newspaper, Joe had listened to Tex's story with interest, and realized why the story wouldn't be printable. He laughed at the idea of the headline reading "United States Prints Counterfeit Money!" | Synopsis9 = Jerry Indutch, photographer for the local paper, is slugged to the ground by the boxing champ after trying to take his picture. Socko Strong steps in and chastises the man for assaulting an innocent fan. The champ turns on him and throws a few punches his way in a rage, but Socko dodges the attack and counters with a strike of his own that lands the boxer on the floor in a daze. He helps his friend Jerry up, and the two start to leave the gym. But two of the champ's cronies make sure they don't get far, striking Jerry and Socko on the head with leaden pipes. Their unconscious forms are loaded into a car and driven to the docks, where the men tell the captain of a shady-looking crew that they found them some new workers. When Socko and Jerry come to, they find themselves in a boiler room with a sinister man standing over them. They are ordered to start loading coal into the furnace or receive a gun lashing. Up above on a catwalk are two crewmen discussing a cache of weapons they were keeping in the cargo hold. Overhearing this, Socko figures out that they've been put to work aboard a ship that's smuggling weapons. After an hour, Jerry collapses from the heat. The guard yells and prods him with the butt of his gun threateningly, angering Socko to the point where he's had enough. He knocks out the guard and helps his ill friend to his feet, taking him up to the outside deck for some fresh air. Another crewman spots them and attacks, being knocked by Socko into the sea valve which breaks off, causing water to start flooding the ship. The entire crew is sent into a panic. The captain announces for everyone to start manning the lifeboats. But when the two pals try to join the others, the first mate forces them back with his gun, making them stay onboard for causing the trouble! With sinking hearts, Socko Strong and Jerry Indutch watch the lifeboats disappear in the distance. Suddenly there is a terrific explosion as the water reaches the ship's boilers. Socko and Jerry are hurled clear of the sinking vessel. They are able to climb onto a large piece of driftwood, where they float for many hours, straight through nightfall. Next morning they find that they have drifted onto an island, where the sound of drums draws them in. Deeper in the jungle brush is a tiny native village. The villagers start attacking Socko and Jerry on sight, scaring the meek photographer into believing they were cannibals. But as Socko fights off each of the warriors with his fine boxing skill, the impressed chief orders a halt so he can better examine the intruder who enters his village unannounced. He was a man who admired strength in others, and so he offers Socko the position of being his personal bodyguard. Wanting to avoid any further aggression from the tribe, Socko accepts for the time being, until they are able to find a way back to the USA... | Synopsis10 = The huge transport plane bearing Skip Schuyler droned over the ocean towards Hawaii, where it lands by the army base on Honolulu. Skip headed straight to Major Barton's office where he gets introduced to the inventor, Professor Anthony Carnochan, owner of a pineapple plantation, who claims to have made an astounding discovery. Later, while driving Mr. Carnochan to his plantation, Skip asks him just what it was that he discovered. Carnochan explains that he has invented a new type of explosive, with a single tiny capsule having the destructive power of a sixteen inch artillery shell! It would spell doomsday if it fell into the hands of an digressive nation, which is why, he assures Skip, he's been conducting his experiments in utmost secrecy. The professor's house at the plantation was a rambling white affair. They swung up the drive and parked by the front steps where they got out and entered through the double-doors to a large entrance hall. Carnochan calls his daughter, Donna, to meet Skip Schuyler, but there was no response. Upstairs, he found the door to his lab had been broken into, and when they looked inside, the two of them saw drawers pulled out, test tubes broken, and papers strewn everywhere. Someone had ransacked the place trying to find the formula. Carnochan quickly rushed to the desk lamp and unscrewed a plate on the inner side if the shade, revealing a piece of paper hidden underneath. He let out a sigh of relief. On the hidden sheet was the formula that the ransacker was probably looking for. Skip points out a note on the room's lampshade, left by the would-be thief. The message read that whoever was searching for the formula has kidnapped Carnochan's daughter, and expects him to bring the formula to them if he ever wished to see her again. In a panic, the professor raced down the stairs calling his daughter's name.He trips over something by the front door and finds a piece of angora wool from Donna's favorite sweater. He called Skip over, who had been examining a similar piece in the upstairs hallway. They conclude that whoever had grabbed Donna failed to notice that she was leaving a trail behind for her father to follow. The two rushed out into the jungle, spotting another bit of the material, and then farther off was another. Skip and Carnochan followed the small tufts of wool across the plantation grounds towards the mountain rearing itself beyond. The trail led up a rocky path noticing that each bit of wool was found at intervals of about twenty yards. As they rounded a bend in the path, Skip quickly pulled the professor into the brush, narrowly avoiding being sighted by a large Hawaiian native, that Carnochan recognized as his plantation's foreman, standing on guard outside a cave. Skip carefully navigated his way around the man onto the top of the cave entrance where he leapt onto the Hawaiian's back, bringing the man crashing to the ground with enough force to knock the wind out of him. Two hard blows later, and the Hawaiian is down for the count. However, there was another man in the cave who comes out to investigate after hearing the sounds of a struggle! He came running out the entrance, gun in hand, while Skip's back was to him. The man took aim, but was felled by a shot through the heart before he could release the hammer. Carnochan reholstered his sidearm and rushed to Skip's side as he stepped into the cave. Donna was tied up with her mouth gagged in the back of the cavern. The men rescued her and took her back home where the authorities were contacted. Skip takes time out to congratulate Donna for her brilliant idea of leaving a trail with bits of her sweater, for without it they never would have found her... | Synopsis11 = Steve and Rusty hold off Sin Fu's and Ichabod Slade's men from their cover point at the top of a hill. But it seemed that their luck was about to run out as Slade managed to get behind the duo and aimed his gun at their backs. Steve was kept centered in the gun's sight as the trigger was squeezed. At that exact moment, an earthquake erupted from the island, throwing Ichabod's aim off by scant inches. All parties were temporarily confused when the shaking wouldn't let up, the entire island rumbled and started forming cracks. Alfred Forrest shouted for Steve and Rusty to get a move on, as the island was starting to sink back beneath the waves where it had first risen. As the three of them rushed to where the others were waiting, Steve realized that the only boat on the island had been destroyed when they crashed it into a rock. But the Duchess reminds them that she still had her seaplane parked by the nearby beach, and she could fly them all out of danger. Rusty and the boys are in agreement, so Steve and Alfred decide to go along with her, after all she had already betrayed Slade by rescuing them. Not far, Sin Fu gets the same idea as the Duchess and leads his companions in a race to the plane, all the while the island cracked and crumbled around them. Steve's party reaches the beach first, with Ichabod Slade stepping up in front of them seconds after with a gun. His attention is on Steve, feeling wrathful towards the man that ruined his smuggling operation, not paying any attention to Forrest, who grabbed the machine gun from Rusty and fired a round into Slade's chest. The Duchess, meanwhile, helped Specs and Tubby into the plane before she herself got into the pilot's seat. Steve, Rusty, and Forrest followed behind, just as Sin Fu and his gang appeared through the foliage. They opened fire, as the Duchess struggled to get the engine to start. With one great sputter, the propeller spun to life as the plane began to roar forwards, gaining altitude as the wind gathered beneath it's wings. With one final cry, Sin Fu's men called out for help as the island disappeared under the waters of the ocean. With their plane flying across the sea, one can only wonder what new adventures await Rusty and friends... | Synopsis12 = Kolui, an island paradise in the Pacific, was the headquarters of the Inter-Island Shipping Company that has appealed to the United States Navy due to reports of piracy involving their boats, which keep vanishing. Don Kerry and Red Murphy are assigned to investigate the disappearances, learning through the other shipping employees about a seaplane that's been seen flying over the island lately. It was their only lead, so for the next two days the pair start searching the island's inlets for signs of a seaplane. Red noticed a trail of oil starting to form in the river they followed. It became thicker and easier to see as they journeyed further downstream until the two navy officers arrived in a clearing in the jungle, where they were met face to face with the infamous criminal known as "Taurus the bull". The natives in the area had warned him of their approach and so he and his men set up an ambush to trap them. Don and Red are tied up by Perkins, a glasses-wearing thug. A seaplane flies over the sailors' heads, likely the same one they were searching for. Perkins explains that Taurus would use the plane to bomb the decks of ships before lowering himself down to steal all the valuables aboard. Then, leaving dynamite on the lower decks, he retreats back aboard the plane as the fiery explosion sinks the ship, hence why the shipping company never found them. Taurus believes Perkins talks too much for his own good so he ties him up as well. Don, Red, and Perkins are then left on a tiny island only 15 feet in diameter, which will be swallowed up by the tide, leaving them as food for the school of sharks swimming around. As the water rises, Don gets an idea. Grabbing Perkins's glasses with his mouth, he adjusts them so that the sunlight hits the lens at just the right angle, creating a beam that burns through their ropes. They have to risk swimming to shore with nowhere else to go, luckily for Don and Red the sharks swarm over Perkins, completely ignoring them. Now it was time to stop Taurus the Bull from robbing any more ships. The criminal is seen on a high ledge overlooking the sea. Shots are fired from both sides, but none hit the mark. In an attempt to escape from the navy gentlemen, Taurus dives into the water and begins swimming away. Suddenly, a tentacle wraps itself around his waist, and then another grabs his leg, and before Don Kerry and Red Murphy's eyes, Taurus' fate is sealed by a hungry octopus that was resting on the sea floor. Back at the Shipping Company, the President and the Admiral wish to congratulate Don and Red for their fine work with a feast. The president treats the boys to the Kolui Island delicacies... Shark steak and Octopus! | Editor1_1 = Vincent Sullivan | Editor2_1 = Vincent Sullivan | Editor3_1 = Vincent Sullivan | Editor4_1 = Vincent Sullivan | Editor5_1 = Vincent Sullivan | Editor6_1 = Vincent Sullivan | Editor7_1 = Vincent Sullivan | Editor8_1 = Vincent Sullivan | Editor9_1 = Vincent Sullivan | Editor10_1 = Vincent Sullivan | Editor11_1 = Vincent Sullivan | Editor12_1 = Vincent Sullivan | Writer1_1 = Bert Christman | Writer1_2 = Gardner Fox | Writer2_1 = Ed Winiarski | Writer3_1 = Jerry Siegel | Writer4_1 = Jim Chambers | Writer5_1 = Ed Winiarski | Writer6_1 = Fred Schwab | Writer7_1 = Bart Tumey | Writer8_1 = Frank Thomas | Writer9_1 = Joseph Sulman | Writer10_1 = Tom Hickey | Writer11_1 = Bob Kane | Writer12_1 = Bart Tumey | Penciler1_1 = Bert Christman | Penciler2_1 = Ed Winiarski | Penciler3_1 = Joe Shuster | Penciler4_1 = Jim Chambers | Penciler5_1 = Ed Winiarski | Penciler6_1 = Fred Schwab | Penciler7_1 = Bart Tumey | Penciler8_1 = | Penciler9_1 = Joseph Sulman | Penciler10_1 = Tom Hickey | Penciler11_1 = Bob Kane | Penciler12_1 = Bart Tumey | Inker1_1 = Bert Christman | Inker2_1 = Ed Winiarski | Inker3_1 = Joe Shuster | Inker4_1 = Jim Chambers | Inker5_1 = Ed Winiarski | Inker6_1 = Fred Schwab | Inker7_1 = Bart Tumey | Inker8_1 = | Inker9_1 = Joseph Sulman | Inker10_1 = Tom Hickey | Inker11_1 = Bob Kane | Inker12_1 = Bart Tumey | Colourist1_1 = | Letterer1_1 = | Appearing1 = '''Featured Characters:' * Supporting Characters: * , Dodds' butler Adversaries: * Other Characters: * Tom * Vivian Dale Locations: * ** *** Items: * Vehicles: * None | Appearing2 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Inspector LeGrand Adversaries: * Count Guniff * Guniff's band Other Characters: * Major Fonteau * Jean Le Grand Locations: * Unknown Items: * None Vehicles: * None | Appearing3 = Featured Characters: * Steve Carson Supporting Characters: * Adversaries: * Counterfeiters ** Jake ** Mike ** Nick Other Characters: * Motorcycle Police Locations: * Tarryville (fictional town) Items: * None Vehicles: * None | Appearing4 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Old Man Adversaries: * Wolf Rucker * Verne Starett * Marty Snell Other Characters: * Sheriff Locations: * Unknown Items: * None Vehicles: * Mustang (horse) | Appearing5 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Gabby Maguire Adversaries: * Colonel Benback * Butts * Crusher Other Characters: * Colonel McAllister Locations: * Unknown Items: * None Vehicles: * Plane | Appearing6 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Unnamed Man from the Future Adversaries: * None Other Characters: * (See Trivia) Locations: * Unknown Items: * Several 1940's Inventions Vehicles: * None | Appearing7 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Adversaries: * Ringer * Palfry * Hefty Other Characters: * Lillian Fenton Locations: * Naratoga Track (fictional horse-race track) Items: * None Vehicles: * None | Appearing8 = Featured Characters: * Tex Supporting Characters: * Joe Adversaries: * Counterfeiters Other Characters: * Browne Locations: * New York ** Manhatten ** Brooklyn Items: * Printing Plates Vehicles: * None | Appearing9 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Jerry Indutch Adversaries: * The Champ * Weapon Smugglers Other Characters: * Tribal Chief Locations: * Unknown Items: * None Vehicles: * None | Appearing10 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Anthony Carnochan Adversaries: * Kola Hoa * Unnamed Kidnapper Other Characters: * Major Barton * Donna Carnochan Locations: * Hawaii ** Honolulu Items: * None Vehicles: * None | Appearing11 = Featured Characters: * Rusty * Specs * Tubby * Steve Carter Supporting Characters: * Duchess Adversaries: * Ichabod Slade * Long Sin * The Captain * Hunch Other Characters: * Alfred P. Forrest Locations: * Unknown Items: * None Vehicles: * Seaplane | Appearing12 = Featured Characters: * Don Kerry Supporting Characters: * Red Murphy Adversaries: * Taurus the Bull * Perkins Other Characters: * Shipping Company's President Locations: * Kolui Island Items: * None Vehicles: * None | Notes = * The Sandman becomes a regular recurring feature beginning with this issue. :* This is the second appearance of the Sandman. He appeared last in ''New York World's Fair Comics'' #1, however this story takes place prior to events chronicled in New York World's Fair. The Sandman makes earlier chronological appearances in the first four-issue story-arc from Sandman Mystery Theatre. :* "The Tarantula Strikes" is reprinted in ''Justice League of America (Volume 1)'' #94 and Golden Age Sandman Archives, Volume 1. The original story was never provided with a subtitle, but the Sandman Archives entitles the story as "The Tarantula Strikes". :* First appearance of the Tarantula. He appears next in ''All-Star Squadron'' Annual #3. This version of the Tarantula is not to be confused with either Roger Goldman, Jonathan Law or Catalina Flores. :* Bert Christman is credited as Larry Dean in this issue. * Bulldog Martin appears next in ''More Fun Comics'' #47. | Trivia = * While it remains unconfirmed, this issue may in fact be the first comic book representation of noted English playwright, William Shakespeare. | Recommended = * Adventure Comics * All-Star Comics * All-Star Squadron * New York World's Fair Comics * Sandman Mystery Theatre * The Shadow Strikes | Links = * Adventure Comics #40 index entry * Adventure Comics series index at the Grand Comics Database * Sandman article at Wikipedia * Sandman biography page * Sandman article at Toonopedia * Sandman biography page at the Unofficial Guide to the DC Universe * Sandman article by Jason Sacks * Adventure Comics #40 spoilers 1 * Adventure Comics #40 spoilers 2 }}